The blog of fantasy author Shanna Swendson. Read about my adventures in publishing and occasionally life.

Monday, December 14, 2009

My Weekend of Triumph

I have successfully survived the big Crazy Happy Fun Time weekend, though I did collapse at about 9:30 last night and slept through until 8 this morning. I've partied, my house is moderately clean, I have a start on the Christmas decorating, and I only have a little more baking to do for one more party.

Plus, I got through two performances of the Advent/Christmas portion (plus the Hallelujah Chorus) of The Messiah on Sunday morning. The soprano part of the Hallelujah Chorus counts as an aerobic workout.

But that wasn't my biggest achievement of the weekend.

Friday when I was bringing stuff in from the garage, a giant horsefly either got in during all the coming and going or was sleeping on one of the boxes in the garage and woke up in a warm house and subsequently went nuts. I thought I'd let it out through the patio door, but then as I was getting ready for bed, there was this strange BUUZZZZZZZWhack! sound in my bathroom, and I noticed the giant horsefly flying around the room, running full-speed at all the mirrors. Since the closet doors are mirrored, three of the four walls in my bathroom are mirrored. So it went BUUUZZZZZZWhack! (pause for reeling) BUUUZZZZZZWhack! (momentary stagger) BUUUUZZZZWhack! as the fly repeatedly banged its head against the mirrors. Then it flew out into the bedroom and began banging its head against the walls. Eventually it got under the lampshade and flew around the lightbulb, banging against the inside of the shade. That was when I figured that maybe it was flying at the lights reflected in the mirrors, and I got a bright idea, since I knew I'd get no sleep with that thing buzzing around the room, sounding like a heavily loaded cargo plane.

I opened my bedroom door and turned on the foyer light right outside, then turned out the lights in my bedroom and bathroom. Sure enough, the fly went toward the light, and I very quickly flipped that light off and then slammed the bedroom door shut before turning the bedroom light back on. Success! A quiet bedroom!

Yes, I managed to outwit a concussed insect. I am so proud.

And now I'm taking a bit of a break to go see The Princess and the Frog because I may be grown up, but I suspect I'm still a bit of a Disney princess at heart and besides, frogs!

Then I have to do a few more revisions on that book I was killing myself over last month. Joy.